Starting Points
During the framing of this learning environment a number of starting points were used as a base, ‘enabling general use’ being one of them. A lot of attention was paid to limiting the participation barriers, brought about by the general open character of the cases and the organisation-information. Tables, usable as guidelines, have been developed for teachers preparing and implementing the project.
Together or alone?
The different cases can be used in a school, and if requested the results can be published on the website afterwards. Other schools can give a reaction or can use the results as starting-material for further work. Preferably co-operation starts at the beginning. The cases are suitable for use within existing networks of schools, or ‘schoollinks’ (couples of schools that work together). For working on this project special contact can be made with foreign schools as well. Relating to the theme, schools in developing countries co-operating with schools in de ‘developed’ countries are preferred.
Internationalisation
One of the unique aspects of the electronic learning environment is the possibility for internationalisation. Users get a manual, comprising guidelines to the development and maintenance of an international partnership and the start-up of a web-based Joint Education project.
The co-operation during the implementation can take place remotely for the whole project. Therefore partnerschools are not obliged to visit each other and distance is not a problem at all.
The project is preferably implemented on the Internet with one or more foreign schools. This is a difficult starting point, since the organisation and realisation has to be organised by the participating schools (or the initiator) themselves. The communication plan provides a number of useful guidelines for the organisation and preparation.
Furthermore there is a possibility for schools to work on Sustainable Footprint in a school and publish the results on the site, after which others can go further – therefore schools can also start off on the basis of material contributed by other schools.